


For the Defense

by MootPoint



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-12
Updated: 2018-07-21
Packaged: 2019-06-09 13:46:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 2,467
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15268758
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MootPoint/pseuds/MootPoint
Summary: After the battle for Sokovia, a whole bunch of stuff happened. You may know it as Captain America: Civil War. The Sokovia Accords, Tony' s PTSD kicking in, the Black Panther arrival, et cetera. But what happened in the courtrooms? How do the "normal" people feel?





	1. Chapter 1

It should have been an ordinary morning. The sun was shining, the skies were blue; And protesters were gathered outside the Capitol building in the thousands, carrying homemade signs and chanting. "NO MORE SOKOVIAS! NEVER AGAIN! NO MORE SOKOVIAS! NEVER AGAIN!"

He sighed. This was not going to be an ordinary morning, or a good one at that. He clutched his briefcase a little tighter and kept walking up the steps. He caught a glimpse of a poster with the Mark 4 Iron Man helmet crossed out, as if you could ban an American hero as easily as cigarettes.

The security guard nodded curtly. "Good morning, Senator." He shouted over the protesters. "I DOUBT IT!" He replied. The man waved him in. The Capitol had been breathtaking, once, when he had first started here. That had been almost five years ago. Now it was just a job. He had been so proud of himself once, taking his position as a sign of hope. Who said Political Science was a useless major? They were America's leaders. They were a shining example of democracy, in a literal city on a hill. They were bored, or insane, or both.

"Hello, Nancy." He waved at a familiar face. "Good morning, Senator Thomas." She answered. "Do you know about the topic of the next meeting?" "How could I not?"

Thomas sighed. "I don't think the Russians have been this pissed at us since we landed on the moon." Because the country of Sokovia was so close to Russian territory, they had almost viewed recent events as an attack. Fortunately the ambassadors had managed to delay a nuclear strike, but only with the aid of- "Have you heard anything from the West Wing yet?" "President Obama said that he fully backs the actions of our Avengers, and that he will do so with military force if needed."

Great. Thomas thought.  _Just what we need. "_ Well, I'd better get going. I'll see you on the floor, Representative?" 

She nodded."I'll see you on the floor, Senator." 

And off they both went. 


	2. In the Room Where It Happens

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In the wake of the Battle of Sokovia, Congress has decided to enact the Sokovia Accords, a piece of legislature which limits the Avengers program tremendously, like those leashes that can be pulled way back with the click of a button. Let's see what Senator Thomas thinks about it.

A secret about Congress meetings for those lucky souls who don't know: They're rarely productive and never productive in the way everyone wants, and no one ever leaves a session happy. 

Thomas swore furiously under his breath as he walked out. "Fucking Sokovia. Fucking Congress. Fucking-" He paused as he almost rammed into a young Representative from Oklahoma. "My bad, kid." He continued to curse, albeit a little quieter. "Fucking robots. Fucking Russians." 

Thomas eventually ran out of things to fuck, and soon after arrived at his office. SEN. AARON THOMAS was painted on the window in bold lettering. He smiled, despite the awful morning and afternoon he'd had. It still surprised him.

"Good afternoon, Senator." His secretary Pam smiled at him. "How did your session go?" 

"About as well as usual, Pam. The Sokovia Accords will soon be law, and I have no doubt that they'll go before the United Nations and be ratified. It's a damn shame." Aaron grumbled.

"There was a call earlier from your wife." Pam changed the subject subtly. 

"I'll be in my office, talking to my wife then." Aaron smiled.


	3. Chapter Three: Reflections

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Secretary of State Ross asks a hard question for Aaron to answer. But their similarities aren't enough to get the two men to agree.

Aaron entered his office quietly. He did a lot of things quietly. His wife used to think he was a ninja when he would sneak up behind her and kiss her cheek. It freaked her out, of course, but she always knew he would never hurt her. His office in D.C. was a lot like his office at home. A dark, polished desk took up the center of the room, lined with photos that helped him realize who he fought for: His boys, Jake and Mikey, both playing baseball and smiling at his camera from the dugout. His daughter Bethany as she danced onstage. There was a photo of Aaron and Allison, his wife, at their wedding reception, almost ten years ago. There was a photo of his church's outreach group at a soup kitchen, at New Orleans after Katrina. And right in the middle of it all, though he would never admit it to anyone else featured in his wall of photos, at the most important spot, was a photo of the Captain, shaking Aaron's hand after the Battle of New York City. Aaron's father was a WWII vet, and had been taken captive by HYDRA during the war. He had spoken in hushed tones of the things he'd seen and endured, but there was one story he told loud enough for the whole room to hear. When Captain America burst into a German prison camp, carrying his shield with the American stars and stripes like a reminder of who those men he rescued were. Steve Rogers single-handedly saved an entire camp of men. _That_ was who Aaron had wanted to be as a child, as a teen. He had enlisted in the U.S. Air Force at the tender age of eighteen, becoming a Cryptologic Linguist. He was a code-breaker for the Air Force, and picked up Arabic and Pashto as part of his training. 

But war is hell, and no one knows that better than soldiers. When the time came that Aaron's enlistment was over, he didn't re-up, the soldiers' term for re-enlisting. He went home. 

There are other ways to serve, his father had told him. And so Aaron found himself in politics. His veteran status and promises to help those who needed it found him allies on both sides of the aisle. When he wasn't in the office, he was working for organizations like Red Cross, Habitat for Humanity, and Team Rubicon, a nonprofit disaster relief organization made up of veterans. 

Aaron pressed the button on his phone. "You have  _one new message_." The phone chirped. "Hi honey, it's Ally. Just calling to say good morning. I know you're busy, but when you get a chance, can you call home? The kids miss you. Jake doesn't feel good, and Bethany's at a friend's house. Anyway, I love you. Bye, baby." The line beeped again. 

Aaron held the receiver in his hand, itching to pick up and call home. Jake was sick? In May? And Bethany was over at a friend's? What friend? Aaron sighed, and flipped the lights on. Some things shouldn't be dwelt on in the dark. He picked up the phone, and dialed out of muscle memory. 

She picked up on the first ring. "Hey baby." 

"Good morning, love." Aaron smiled, but she couldn't see it. "How are you?" 

"Well, I had to call out of work because of Jake. Mikey and Bethany are good- I think. I haven't seen Bethany since I dropped her off at Reagan's house last night. Mikey is out at the park with my brother." Ally sighed. "But other than that, fine." 

"What's wrong with Jake?" Aaron asked. 

"He's got a big stomach ache and he says that he feels like he'll throw up. He's clammy. He doesn't want to get up. It's a shame, too. I was looking forward to seeing him pitch." Ally sighed. 

Aaron chuckled a little bit. "Put him on the phone, please." 

"Ok." Aaron could hear her calling to their oldest son even though she had pulled away from the phone. 

"Jake, your dad wants to talk to you!" 

"H-hi, Dad."Jake sounded breathless. "What's up?" 

"I heard you're not feeling too great, bud. What's wrong?" 

"Well, mom thinks I've got the flu. But I just think it's allergies." 

"You know what I think?" Aaron asked. "I think you're just nervous about the game today. It's the first time you're pitching, right?"  

"Yeah." Jake was almost silent. 

"I know that you might think this will go badly, or that you won't be able to do it. I feel like that sometimes. When I have to speak in front of the whole Congress sometimes it feels like I'll throw up. But the important thing is to drink lots of water, eat food, and just breathe. What do I always say?" Aaron prompted. 

"Everything will happen the way God wants it to. All we can do is live." Jake answered. 

"Exactly, bud. So, what are you going to do?" Aaron smiled. 

"I'm gonna go downstairs, eat breakfast, drink water, and get ready for the game." Jake exhaled shakily into the receiver. 

"Alright." Aaron toyed with a pen on his desk. "I can't wait to see the video. I love you, bud." 

"Bye, Dad." Jake already sounded more confident. 

The phone clicked. Aaron chuckled. 

When he had been Jake's age, the most stressful thing in his life had been grades and disappointing his parents. It was nice to know some things never changed. But Aaron had other things to worry about. 

He looked at his calendar. There was supposed to be a meeting with Secretary Ross today, but the bastard was busy in New York with trying to get the Avengers to put on their new leash. "Fucking Ross. What a dumbass." He swore. 

"Senator Thomas." Pam chimed over the intercom. "Secretary Ross is here to see you." 

"Be right there." Aaron said. He took a deep, calming breath, and walked over to his door. He plastered on a fake smile. "Good morning, Secretary Ross. What can I do for you this morning?" 

The John-Bolton-lookalike smiled just as falsely. "Well, Senator, I came because I had some concerns." 

"Oh?" Aaron said. "Concerns?" 

"I noticed at the meeting you were one of the only dissenting voices about the new Accords. Could you explain to me why?" Secretary Ross put one gnarled hand on the chair across from Aaron's. "May I?" 

"Of course." Aaron said, taking his seat after. "Secretary, where were you when Operation Iraqi Freedom began?" 

"I was an advisor to the generals. They found my veteran status to be of use." 

"So you were a part of the head shed?" Aaron supplied, using military jargon the man would be familiar with. 

"Yes." Ross gritted his teeth. 

"Well, one of the reasons that there are quite so many casualties in Iraqi Freedom is that, after a few well-covered events in Iraq, the government decided that it was better to be cautious than to be... shall we say, prolific?"Aaron said. "So the rules got stricter. Punishments came down harder. There was an infighting between our commanders and the men dying on the ground. Good men died because they couldn't raise their guns without being court martialed." Aaron took a deep breath. 

"What are you playing at, kid?" Ross growled. 

"The Avengers Initiative is a program under DOD oversight. So by extension, they're soldiers. And soldiers can't do their jobs if you've got the government breathing down their fucking necks." Aaron snarled. "I was  _in_ Iraq. I watched too many good men die. Do you know how many fucking funerals I've been to?" 

"Too damn many." Ross replied. "I was in the Army for forty years, kid. Do you think I don't know exactly what you're talking about? I served in Vietnam. But I still support the Sokovia Accords." Ross stood. "Part of being Secretary of State is being able to be on everyone's good side. And I can't be on everyone's good side if my country has just dropped a city on Eastern Europe." 

"Were you not at the same debriefing I was?" Aaron asked. "You know that's not what happened." 

"But the rest of the world doesn't." Ross answered. "We've been playing with fire by letting the Avengers exist, let alone run operations unchecked. Either you control the fire, or you get burned. You're a Senator of New York. How many people died or lost everything in the Battle? You need to think of the bigger picture." 

Aaron sighed. 

"The reason I came in here was to tell you that there will be an emergency meeting of the United Nations to ratify the Accords. I know you've got contacts all over the place. Don't ruin this for all of us." Ross pointed a finger at him. "Take care, Senator." He walked away. 

_This doesn't feel right. Something is wrong about this whole thing._

 


	4. What Happens in Austria.... Probably Should Have Stayed In Austria

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aaron is going about his business, planning a Memorial Day surprise for his family, when he receives the news about what has happened in Switzerland.

He was looking up bounce houses when it happened. The kids had wanted a big Memorial Day Barbecue, and Aaron and Ally finally agreed. All of Aaron's friends and their children would be invited, and all of Ally's. The caterer was booked, the petting zoo was ready, the venue was set up. And Aaron had just clicked order on the bounce house he wanted when his phone rang. 

"Senator Thomas?" The voice on the other side was tearful. "You should probably turn on the TV." 

Aaron's kids weren't old enough to remember September eleventh. They weren't old enough to remember JFK's assassination. They hadn't really lived through any tragedies. But they were about to. 

"Reports are coming in, Tim, that the United Nations meeting in Vienna was just attacked, by an individual known as James Buchanan Barnes, or the Winter Soldier. Twelve were killed in the blast, many more wounded. Among the dead is Wakandan king T'Chaka. He is survived by his son, the present king of Wakanda, T'Challa." 

Aaron swore furiously.  _Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck._  This would end badly. Very badly. 

"Everything okay, Senator?" Pam asked. "You seem a little hot under the collar." 

"No, Pam." Aaron answered solemnly. "Everything is not ok." 

This could do everything the United States, and Aaron in particular, was trying desperately to avoid. They needed the Avengers. They needed to remain peaceful with other nations. But a terrorist attack, connected with one of America's heroes, might throw everything out the window.

"There is an ongoing manhunt for Barnes, and a hotline has been set up. Please call this number if anyone in your area matches this photo of Barnes-" The TV flashed up an old photo of a cleanshaven man in US military uniform. "You may be in danger." 

Steve Rogers' briefing had stated that he no longer believed that Sergeant Barnes was a threat. And maybe he was right. But someone had blown up the United Nations. So this would end in bloodshed. 

"Pam, can you believe this?" Aaron sighed. "Pam?" But she was gone, back to her own desk. 

He would have called home, but what could his wife say, if she was even home by now. He didn't dare disturb her work. He would have called his friends, but what would he say? What else could he do but commiserate? 

Aaron walked over to his table at the other end of his office. On top of it was an unlabeled glass bottle full of colorless liquid. It was called Zubrówka, a vodka only made in Poland. A gift from the Polish ambassador. He poured a glass damn near to the brim, and downed it in a swallow. 


End file.
